The number of permits to carry a firearm issued by Minnesota sheriffs dropped significantly in 2022 after two record years in a row.
Last year, 65,257 Minnesotans obtained a permit to carry, down more than 38% from the all-time record of 106,000 in 2021, according to the annual permit-to-carry report released Wednesday by the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
Minnesota saw a surge in the number of permits issued in 2020, a year marked by the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, civil unrest and a rise in violent crime. A total of 96,554 were issued in 2020. Previously, sheriffs had issued anywhere from 40,000 to 70,000 permits yearly
The pandemic-era trend appears to be easing. Rural and urban counties saw significant decreases in the number of permits issued. Hennepin County, the state’s most populous with more than 1.2 million people, issued about 8,600 permits last year. Compare that to more than 16,000 in 2021.
In rural Polk County in northwestern Minnesota, the sheriff issued 363 permits last year; in 2021, that county issued 690. Olmsted, St. Louis, Clay and Beltrami counties also saw a significant drop in permits issued.
As of the report’s release date, there are 395,626 valid permits to carry a firearm in the state of Minnesota. That’s up from 387,013 the year before.
In 2022, sheriffs suspended 177 permits, revoked 27, voided 1,414 and denied 866. There were four reported incidents of lawful and justifiable use of firearms by permit holders.....
One can assume there is a cyclical nature to the annual number of permit applications - which include renewals, given the 5 year life of the Minnesota Permit To Carry (MN PTC), and the fact that there were high numbers of permits originally issued in specific years.
That responsible citizens were getting trained, acquiring MN PTCs, and arming themselves given the local criminal uprising, and breakdown of civility and Law Enforcement following George Floyd's death is certainly no secret.
In spite of the headline's message, there are nearly 9000 more active MN PTCs reported by the current BCA document.
